Since most of it came out of my"Might Use That Someday" box, the price was right too. Ten Logan or C&H Mat cutting blades are around $6. The spacers support the rectangular blade closely. It works great!

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bigrip74

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Re: WHICH BALSA STRIPER DO YOU USE AND WHY?Reply #35 - Jun 12th, 2017 at 5:47pm

I needed a device for cutting Basswood also known as Linden because I gave up on 1/16 Balsa sticks. Basswood is about as light as Balsa but has a different grain structure that is more difficult to strip. I made my own strip cutter out of Aluminum angle and 1/16 Aluminum strip spacers. The key is the C&H 1200 or Logan 270 Mat cutting blade available from Amazon. Unlike my trusty Master Airscrew cutter, this blade does not flex or wander.

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staubkorb

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Re: WHICH BALSA STRIPER DO YOU USE AND WHY?Reply #33 - Aug 7th, 2016 at 8:11am

Another issue with the Master Airscrew unit (IMHO) is the blade rake. The stock blade (X-Acto #11) sits too straight, and, due to its thickness results in the wood splitting ahead of the "cut" - noticeable in wood generally over 1/16th (1.6mm).

I switched to #11 scalpel blades (the ones that fit the "small" handle). These are physically smaller, thinner and MUCH sharper than any "hobby" class #11 blades and allow a few more degrees of rake in the holder. The blade slices much better and doesn't compress the wood a much (less chance of bowing).

I've had mine for nearly 50 years now...

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Comparing Spammers to a pile of organic waste is an insult to the organic waste!

On the master airscrew if you add a 6-32 nut on the outside of the knob to take the slop out of the threads it will work much better. I also sanded off the draft on the fence portion of the guide and that helped a lot as well.

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NcGunny

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Re: WHICH BALSA STRIPER DO YOU USE AND WHY?Reply #30 - Oct 31st, 2015 at 12:40am

My buddy gave me a new #2 Xacto and a bunch of blades to go with it. I think if the MA could accept these it might help with the blade deflection.So far I have found the #2 blades to be worse with the factory sharpness than #11. I spent 1 minute with a blade on a stone and it turned it razor sharpness.

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Colonel Manfred von Holstein

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Re: WHICH BALSA STRIPER DO YOU USE AND WHY?Reply #29 - Oct 29th, 2015 at 1:01pm

I set the depth on the MA stripper to slightly more than half the thickness of the piece I'm stripping. Run your piece thru, flip it, run it thru again to complete the cut. Block sand the edge on your sheet and strip another. You only reset the depth for thicker material. The blade point never touches your cutting mat so it stays sharp. I also keep my finger on the adjustment knob to preload the slide to take up any slop in the threads.It's not an ideal situation but it makes the most of a cheap stripper.

I had guys before suggesting when I was having trouble with the MA to make several different depth passes ..sounds logical but.... Every passes means loosening and tightening the blade... Every pass also raises the chance for the horrid blade wander. Maybe the older models are built different? But mine is all a injection molded plastic body and the threaded holes dont even have a metal insert. They just thread the plastic. But it does work for contest grade stuff very well.

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Sky9pilot

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Re: WHICH BALSA STRIPER DO YOU USE AND WHY?Reply #27 - Oct 28th, 2015 at 9:54am

On the McLeod stripper the tip of the blade is anchored in the base in a narrow hole that fits the blade. Keeping the blade vertical and from wandering. Make the harder balsa a bit tougher to keep against the fence.Sky9pilot

If God is your Co-pilot...switch seats...Your attitude will determine your altitude!- John MaxwellAnd ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free. Jn 8:32

From my readings, I know that others are similarly dissatisfied with the MA, and I was not happy with it as a stand alone. Rather than chuck it, I decided to mount it as shown, and see if I could get it to work to my satisfaction. So far so good for what I have been using it for.

If I run across problems (threads stripping, blade wandering, ...) I'll be sure to let all know. I would like to have a vertical adjustment, and a more precise horizontal adjustment, but as long as it works, I'll be happy.

Richard

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NcGunny

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Re: WHICH BALSA STRIPER DO YOU USE AND WHY?Reply #25 - Oct 28th, 2015 at 1:30am

I got this "New McLeod" balsa stripper after winning a contest. It is normally way above my budget, but is an outstanding balsa stripper. The trick was using a sanding block as a push tool for moving the balsa through the stripper.

I had great success using this stripper but sometimes the local hobby shop balsa is so hard that I've had trouble with keeping the balsa against the fence as it is pushed through the stripper! Live and learn. Gotta watch the grain in the sheets.

Sky9pilot

( 19 KB | 9 Downloads )

If God is your Co-pilot...switch seats...Your attitude will determine your altitude!- John MaxwellAnd ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free. Jn 8:32

I find the Master stripper to be pretty much worthless most of the time. Its okay if you are using select grade premium wood. Imho I think the MA would be better if it had a adjustment for the depth of cut instead of width.Face it..the thing is all plastic and if you are loosening and tightening the blade keeper alot,its gunna strip out. I use a hardwood block of wood with shims and single edge razor blades that I have resharpened. I bought 4 boxes and took a afternoon to sharpen them all. The single blade cutter doesnt seem to get the blade deflection like the MA does. Even with the premium new #11 Xacto blades it still is so..so

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RJ

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Re: WHICH BALSA STRIPER DO YOU USE AND WHY?Reply #22 - Oct 27th, 2015 at 3:23pm